Semi-Serious PRoblem Please Read and help

alright so i went to check my oil this morning and i noticed it was really low so i was kinda curious what was wrong... so im looking around and it appears i have a cracked valve cover and its leaking oil. theres 2 ways ive heard i could go about doing this 1 would be to have it taken off and then have the aluminum welded 2 would be to go to a junk yard and find a new valve cover... my question to you people is which would be my cheaper/smarter way to go. this has never happened to me before so i dont know what to do